u/breadeaterrrrr

I know the title sounds bad, but stay with me. I (26M) have a little brother (15M) and we come from a lower middle class family. We have a college fund for my little brother, and I am super happy that he has one because my parents couldn’t have one for me, so it’s a step in the right direction for him.

I recently went snooping around our family’s finances to see how everything was going. I noticed that my brother’s college savings account had minimal gains through the time it’s been open (~6 years). I realized that my parents invested into ETFs that weren’t giving any type of meaningful return (talking about 1-2% annually) and so I decided to *rebalance* the portfolio.

I work at a pretty successful startup and recently received a bonus comprised well over 300K (there was a liquidity event, allowing me to sell my shares) which has been the most amount of money I have ever seen in my life. I am pretty frugal and have my own finances in check, so I am going to open a new account with my bank (so they can actively manage the money) and put 250K in the portfolio (on top of what he had saved up) that he will be able to use for college.

Me and my brother have a very joking/pranking type of relationship, so this is basically going to lead up to one big April Fool’s Day prank when he is about to go to college LOL.

Any other ideas to add to this scheme/prank would be greatly appreciated!

EDIT: It seems like a lot of people are under the impression that I somehow and betting on my company’s equity as the investment for my brother’s college fund, this is not the case. Also, I see that a lot of people think I somehow illegally got access to this account, and moved it somewhere secret. This was a family opened brokerage account, and it is being managed by an investment team with my bank. Lastly, the reason why it is not in a 529 is because I hope to have this be the start of a general savings fund that my brother can use for himself when he’s older.

Grew up in rural Utah, my brother left one day during summer to go “live” with a group out past our town and didn’t come back for almost three years. Watched my parents fall apart trying to get him out and by the time he did come back none of us really knew how to act around him. AMA.

exactly as the title reads. i am getting placed into this group for my first rotation as part of an analyst program and want to know what to expect.

all words are appreciated!

exactly as the title reads. i am getting placed into this group for my first rotation as part of an analyst program and want to know what to expect.

all words are appreciated!

(goal) position: 2200 shares + 800x 8/21 250c

so everyone’s looking at falcon launch, starlink subs, the ai compute satellite roadmap. you’re all looking at the wrong thing.

grok is inside spacex now. spacex builds rockets. rockets go up. once they’re running inference from orbit there’s no competitor that can touch them on latency.

also did anyone else notice shotwell rang the opening bell from new york while elon rang it from texas?? that’s the quantum entanglement of leadership and you don’t pull that off unless the stock’s about to do something crazy.

the cursor deal, 60 billion in stock for a code editor. i’m calling it the first move in space based ai colonizing software development. once that’s fully merged the rocket writes the code and the code builds the rocket, infinite loop, infinite upside (aka going to the moon).

and the echostar options volume, eleven times the 30 day average. somebody knows something about a spectrum deal and it’s not me ;) got the s-1 cover page tattooed on my ribs as a paper hands deterrent. see you all at 4000.

i am going to be a first year analyst at a financial services institution. i spoke with my assigned mentor to scope if there are any things i need to come prepared knowing. he said nothing much, except the fact that all they do is use copilot.

now this wouldn’t be a big deal if all gen ai models were the same, but they aren’t. i’ve been using claude code for a while and have heard the two models are very different.

any advice is helpful!

**Context:**
Living with family, no rent. Dual W-2 income (one full-time, one part-time). $110k private loans at ~7.5% WAR on a 1-year deferment, plus ~$10k federal at a low rate. $8k CC debt at 29% APR, one-time, static balance.

**Monthly cash flow**
Full-time job deposits $2,875/mo after Roth 401k, HSA, premiums (using $300 to have a conservative estimate), and income tax. Part-time adds $2,096/mo. Family member A contributes $1,000/mo (treated as accelerant, not income). Family member B sends $500/mo directly to my loan servicer (not included in my FCF). Expenses run $350/mo (transportation, groceries, gym, subscriptions, fun). Free cash flow: **$5,620/mo.** Pre-deducted from full-time paycheck before I ever see it: Roth 401k at 6% ($350/mo), HSA via payroll ($367/mo, FICA-exempt), and health/dental premiums (~$300/mo estimate).

**401k structure**
Contributing 6% as Roth. Employer matches 100% on the first 1% and 50% on the next 5%, for a 3.5% match. Also receive a 2% fixed contribution and ~1% profit sharing. Total employer money: ~$4,550/yr. Roth contribution: $4,200/yr. Total 401k annually: **$8,750.**

**Phase 1 - July 6 to ~Aug 15, 2026**
Week 1: $1,000 to HYSA as emergency fund seed. Everything else goes to the CC debt. At $5,620 FCF, the $8k balance is gone in roughly 6 weeks.

**Phase 2 - Aug 15, 2026 to Jan 2028**
After the CC debt is gone, monthly allocation from my $5,620 FCF: Roth IRA gets $625/mo. HYSA tax reserve gets $250/mo (part-time employer withholds at a low rate and I'll owe ~$3k in April without this). Private loans get $3,500/mo from me, plus $500/mo from family B, for **$4,000/mo total.** Taxable brokerage gets $1,245/mo. First 5 months include $250/mo to HYSA emergency fund until it hits $2,400. Loan amortization at $4,000/mo and 7.5%: starts at $110k in Sep 2026, hits ~$72k when deferment ends in Jul 2027, and lands at **~$51k by Jan 2028.**

**Decision point - January 2028**
18 months of W-2 history, ~750 credit score, ~$51k private loan balance. At that point I attempt to refinance private loans. Current market rates for strong profiles, 3.6–4.7%. Target is ≤5%.

**Phase 3A - if refi works (≤5%)**
Loan minimum drops to $529/mo on a 10-year term at 4.5%. Roth IRA stays at $625/mo. Brokerage jumps to $4,216/mo. Tax reserve stays at $250/mo. **$4,841/mo going into investments.**

**Phase 3B - if refi fails (>5.5%)**
Keep paying $3,500/mo on loans. Roth IRA at $625/mo. Brokerage at $1,245/mo. Tax reserve at $250/mo. Private loans paid off ~March 2029.

**Account structure**
Roth 401k and HSA are through employer, fully automatic. Roth IRA and taxable brokerage are both at the same brokerage. HYSA holds both the emergency fund and tax reserve

**Non-negotiables**
Never drop below 6% Roth 401k deferral, $4,550/yr in employer money depends on it. HSA must be funded via payroll only, direct contributions lose the FICA exemption. Roth IRA funded before April 15, 2027. $250/mo tax reserve always funded. Federal loans never refinanced to private. Family contributions are extras. Brokerage allocation gets redirected to loans if the January 2028 refi falls through.

hello all, as the title says, is it okay to not have a taxable brokerage account? i have around 110k in private student loan debt with a weighted average interest rate of around 7.5%. i’ve mapped it out and if i aggressively pay it down i can be free of debt by early 2029. these aggressive payments also allow me to put a bit more than $1000 into a taxable brokerage account. is it worth having the taxable brokerage account or should i commit all of it to my student loan payments?

**Context:**
Living with family, no rent. Dual W-2 income (one full-time, one part-time). $110k private loans at ~7.5% WAR on a 1-year deferment, plus ~$10k federal at a low rate. $8k CC debt at 29% APR, one-time, static balance.

**Monthly cash flow**
Full-time job deposits $2,875/mo after Roth 401k, HSA, premiums (using $300 to have a conservative estimate), and income tax. Part-time adds $2,096/mo. Family member A contributes $1,000/mo (treated as accelerant, not income). Family member B sends $500/mo directly to my loan servicer (not included in my FCF). Expenses run $350/mo (transportation, groceries, gym, subscriptions, fun). Free cash flow: **$5,620/mo.** Pre-deducted from full-time paycheck before I ever see it: Roth 401k at 6% ($350/mo), HSA via payroll ($367/mo, FICA-exempt), and health/dental premiums (~$300/mo estimate).

**401k structure**
Contributing 6% as Roth. Employer matches 100% on the first 1% and 50% on the next 5%, for a 3.5% match. Also receive a 2% fixed contribution and ~1% profit sharing. Total employer money: ~$4,550/yr. Roth contribution: $4,200/yr. Total 401k annually: **$8,750.**

**Phase 1 - July 6 to ~Aug 15, 2026**
Week 1: $1,000 to HYSA as emergency fund seed. Everything else goes to the CC debt. At $5,620 FCF, the $8k balance is gone in roughly 6 weeks.

**Phase 2 - Aug 15, 2026 to Jan 2028**
After the CC debt is gone, monthly allocation from my $5,620 FCF: Roth IRA gets $625/mo. HYSA tax reserve gets $250/mo (part-time employer withholds at a low rate and I'll owe ~$3k in April without this). Private loans get $3,500/mo from me, plus $500/mo from family B, for **$4,000/mo total.** Taxable brokerage gets $1,245/mo. First 5 months include $250/mo to HYSA emergency fund until it hits $2,400. Loan amortization at $4,000/mo and 7.5%: starts at $110k in Sep 2026, hits ~$72k when deferment ends in Jul 2027, and lands at **~$51k by Jan 2028.**

**Decision point - January 2028**
18 months of W-2 history, ~750 credit score, ~$51k private loan balance. At that point I attempt to refinance private loans. Current market rates for strong profiles, 3.6–4.7%. Target is ≤5%.

**Phase 3A - if refi works (≤5%)**
Loan minimum drops to $529/mo on a 10-year term at 4.5%. Roth IRA stays at $625/mo. Brokerage jumps to $4,216/mo. Tax reserve stays at $250/mo. **$4,841/mo going into investments.**

**Phase 3B - if refi fails (>5.5%)**
Keep paying $3,500/mo on loans. Roth IRA at $625/mo. Brokerage at $1,245/mo. Tax reserve at $250/mo. Private loans paid off ~March 2029.

**Account structure**
Roth 401k and HSA are through employer, fully automatic. Roth IRA and taxable brokerage are both at the same brokerage. HYSA holds both the emergency fund and tax reserve

**Non-negotiables**
Never drop below 6% Roth 401k deferral, $4,550/yr in employer money depends on it. HSA must be funded via payroll only, direct contributions lose the FICA exemption. Roth IRA funded before April 15, 2027. $250/mo tax reserve always funded. Federal loans never refinanced to private. Family contributions are extras. Brokerage allocation gets redirected to loans if the January 2028 refi falls through.

hello, for some background i am going to be joining an early career corporate finance rotational analyst program at a mutual insurance firm. i am studying for CFA L1 in november and was hoping to get placed on a team that’s somewhat adjacent to the curriculum.

recently found out that i am going to be placed on the client solutions and wealth management audit team. this was definitely not what i was hoping for, as i was in contact with the head of the group that i wanted to be placed in, and it felt promising that i would be placed there.

each rotation is one year and there are two years of the program. i want to break into fixed income to hopefully become a pension fund manager/portfolio manager on a fi desk. will this placement cook my career prospects?

thank you for all the help!

title sums it up pretty well.

this has been on my mind as of recently because it’s a genuine interest of mine, but i also feel like it’s inappropriate to say in an interview.

any advice is helpful, cheers.

for anyone wondering, and in no particular order - my top five beers are:

1. kona big wave
2. demon milk stout
3. old brown dog
4. yuengling
5. langunitas

hello all, as the title says; am i allowed to have two jobs at the same time? i currently have a remote part-time job that is in a completely different industry than the job that i am going to be working in-person for.

i want to maximize my earnings as i am just about to graduate college. thankfully wont have any expenses other than student loan payments since im living at home.

is this a good idea?

any help is appreciated, thank you.

edit: the remote job will gross around $20,000 (+/- $5,000) pre tax and the in-person job will gross $70,000 pre tax.